Equity Page 3

Los Angeles River Trail | Photo by TrailLink.com/vikemaze

Bike Path and River Restoration Spark Urban Renewal in Los Angeles

Posted 10/02/17 by Laura Cohen in America's Trails, Trail Use | Tagged with California, Ecology and Environment, Equity, Health and Active Living, Heritage and Restoration, Trail Destinations, Walkability and Bikeability

Public access is a key component of the LA River revitalization, and Rails-to-Trails Conservancy has been a steady supporter of the bike path, which is more than half complete, but with some challenging gaps remaining, including near downtown Los Angeles.

Bay Area Air Quality Management District joins RTC for the ride

Bikes, Buses, BART and Breathing: California’s Richmond Rides

Posted 09/01/17 by Rails-to-Trails Conservancy in America's Trails, Trail Use, Health and Wellness | Tagged with BATC, Bike Commuting, Biking, California, Connected Systems, Encouraging Trail Use, Equity, Health and Active Living, Local Organizing, Safety and Law Enforcement, Urban Pathways, Walkability and Bikeability, Why Use Trails?

Starting in 2016, RTC teamed up with Rich City Rides to lead a program called, “Richmond Rides! Bikes, Buses, BART and Breathing!” Supported by the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, our goals were to foster more biking, walking and transit use to help reduce air pollution and improve personal and community health.

Donny Green leads a bike camp at Red Shed Bike Shop | Photo by Scott Stark

Big Hearts in the Smallest State: A Bike Camp Offers a Providential Pedal

Posted 09/01/17 by Laura Stark in America's Trails, Taking Action, Health and Wellness, Success Stories | Tagged with Biking, Case Studies, Equity, Funding, Health and Active Living, Rhode Island, Schools and Young People, Success Stories, Trail Communities

It’s a heartwarming sight, watching a new rider roll down the trail, a slow grin spreading across his or her face—experiencing that sweet mixture of freedom, independence and pride. It’s an image that Donny Green, director of a youth bike camp in Rhode Island, has seen many times.

Milwaukee Skyline | Photo courtesy iStock by Getty Images

A Plan for the Route of the Badger to Reconnect Milwaukee

Posted 08/28/17 by Willie Karidis in America's Trails, Building Trails | Tagged with Case Studies, Design Strategies, Equity, Facts and FIgures, Walkability and Bikeability, Wisconsin

Southeast Wisconsin has more than 340 miles of world-class trails and the potential for incredible low-stress bicycling routes, but the honest assessment of access to many of those trails is a story of inequality.

Fort Mason segment of the developing San Francisco Bay Trail in California | Photo by Cindy Barks

$90 Million Allocated to Trails, Biking and Green Infrastructure in California

Posted 09/13/16 by Laura Cohen in Policy, Building Trails | Tagged with California, Ecology and Environment, Equity, Funding, State and Federal Programs, Transportation and Health, Walkability and Bikeability

Exciting developments in California! Last week, Gov. Edmund G. Brown Jr.—along with Senate President pro Tempore Kevin de León and Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon—announced California’s plans to allocate $900 million to programs specifically targeted toward reducing greenhouse gas emissions—while benefiting low-income areas, supporting clean transportation and reducing climate pollution.

Schuylkill Banks Boardwalk, the Circuit Trails, Philadelphia | Photo courtesy Montgomery County Planning Commission

10 Reasons the Circuit Trails Are Remarkable

Posted 02/11/16 by Katie Harris in America's Trails, Building Trails | Tagged with Best Of, Celebrating 30 Years, Circuit Trails, Connected Systems, Equity, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Walkability and Bikeability

The Philadelphia region is home to one of the country’s largest trail networks, a visionary model that, when complete, will incorporate 750 miles of connected trails leading through urban landscapes and rural countryside. The system is called the Circuit Trails, and the network will be accessible to all residents and visitors, regardless of age, income or experience level.

Ben Franklin Bridge in Philadelphia | Photo courtesy Mark Willard | CC by 2.0

Forty-Years-Unused Rail Line Could Mean Huge Connections for New Jersey

Posted 02/11/16 by Liz Sewell in Building Trails | Tagged with Demand for Trails, Equity, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Trail Communities

If transformed into a trail, a disused rail segment in Pennsauken, New Jersey, near Merchantville, could help link underserved communities to amenities in New Jersey, Philadelphia and beyond. Read about this in-progress initiative.

New York City DOT Safety City (traffic and pedestrian safety) class | Photo courtesy NYCDOT | CC by 2.0

A Good Place for Everyone to Walk

Posted 10/29/15 by Jay Walljasper in Health and Wellness, Policy | Tagged with Equity, Health and Active Living, Walkability and Bikeability

Walking is a powerful tool to change the world as well as a fundamental human right. To be restrained from free movement is a denial of our liberties and a betrayal of American ideals. Yet many disadvantaged people now think twice before traveling on foot due to dangerous traffic, street crime or a lack of stores and public places within walking distance, which heightens serious problems of poor health, limited transportation options and overall disillusionment in their communities.

Bike Around is getting lots of kids on two wheels in Baltimore, Md. | Photo by Molly Gallant

Charm City by Bike: Baltimore Program Gets Residents on Two Wheels

Posted 06/02/15 by Katie Harris in Trail Use | Tagged with Baltimore Greenway Trails Coalition, Biking, Equity, Maryland

Baltimore, Maryland, has more than 6,000 acres of parkland and public space. But for some Charm City residents, these urban gems are giant unknowns—green placeholders on a map, but unexplored and undiscovered in real life. Fortunately, one program in particular, Bike Around, is helping to change that.

The Effects of Disparities and Walkability on Health: A Closer Look at Washington, D.C.

Posted 02/05/14 by Dr. Ted Eytan in Health and Wellness | Tagged with District Of Columbia, Equity, Walkability and Bikeability, Why Use Trails?

In the past decade, much research has been published about the effects of socioeconomic imbalances on health and wellness. In observance of American Heart Month, RTC is pleased to present this post by Dr. Ted Eytan, which discusses a factor that health professionals attribute as being particularly relevant to the short- and long-term health of communities: walkability.

Bike Safety a Critical Lesson in Latino Community

Posted 07/30/13 by Barry Bergman in Trail Use, Health and Wellness | Tagged with California, Equity, Safety and Law Enforcement

In California, bicycle transportation in the Latino community has skyrocketed over the past decade. Bicycling is an essential mode of transportation for people in working-class neighborhoods of all backgrounds; here in Los Angeles bikes have a particularly significant impact on social and economic mobility for many Latinos.